Decade of Unchecked Illegal Quarrying Plagues Maharashtra’s Ambernath

Quick Summary

• Allegations of illegal stone quarrying and crusher operations have emerged in Mouje Sai and Valivali villages, Ambernath taluka, Thane district, maharashtra.
• Activities have reportedly occurred for over a decade on government-owned land (Survey Number 216: 7.49 hectares) and private land (Survey Number 25: 1.52 hectares), without mandatory approvals.
• Shree Ekvira Aai Pratishthan NGO, headed by Nandakumar Waman Pawar, filed complaints with Thane Collector, State Pollution Control Board (MPCB), Environment Department, and others calling for urgent intervention.
• RTI-revealed documents confirm unauthorized mining at Survey Numbers 25 & 216; though, Survey Numbers 87/2 & 191/3 possess partial clearances but require further examination into violations.
• Environmental concerns include massive destruction of mountains resulting in biodiversity loss; nearby zones such as Barvi Dam fall within eco-sensitive areas exacerbating risks.
• Additional issues involve unauthorized solid-waste dumping violating segregation rules under Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules set for implementation in 2024.
• Ambernath MLA Kisan Shankar Kathore corroborated these concerns through appeals to the Revenue Minister. Kathore alleged explosive-based night-time quarrying near residential areas and Barvi Dam while alerting authorities about royalty evasions causing significant financial losses to the state.
• Previous reports link one operator to illegal activities inside eco-sensitive zones; Bombay HC had previously fined over ₹190 crore for similar offenses related to excess excavation beyond limits.

Indian Opinion Analysis

The disclosures about illegal mining practices spanning decades in Thane district present critical governance challenges regarding environmental regulation enforcement in Maharashtra. Despite penalties issued against operators and significant ecological damage reported by NGOs like Shree Ekvira Aai Pratishthan, the persistent lack of oversight underscores systemic gaps across multiple regulatory bodies-including local administration offices such as Tehsil authorities-responsible for monitoring these activities.

Furthermore, the broader implications extend beyond environmental degradation-with biodiversity loss compounding risks tied directly to public health near affected areas-as amplified by explosions close proximity residential structures plus strategic infrastructure regions namely proximate reservoirs facing imminent destabilization escalations breaching directly community resource safeguarding laws consistency expectations probable catalysts petition pathways National Green Tribunal resolutions ensure thus reliable participatory accountability procedural outcomes anticipated transformative counter-policy frameworks revitalizing regional landscapes moral standards duties necessitate future pathway integrate responsive management mechanisms inclusive critical miner-level problem-solving prioritizations supported electronic technology-supported monitoring feedback cycles adaptable vigilant sustainable growth-focused commitments amplifications India’s administrative ethos enforcement uniform true sincerity integrity complete openness rational policy recalibration capacity endlearnings transitions reformative ethical public-centric culture linked balanced well-being conservation system setups restorative State agencies neutral tactical fundamentally Reviews end requested transparency-loop return attached read